9.1 General

Kiribati is an archipelagic nation comprising 33 islands with
a total land area of only 810 km2 but with a surrounding EEZ of about
3.5 million km2 that includes some of the most productive tuna
fishing grounds in the Pacific. All the islands are of coralline origin and are
surrounded by fringing or barrier coral reefs. The country is divided into three
widely separated island groups - the Gilbert Group in the west, the Phoenix
Group in the centre, and the Line Islands in the east. The distance between the
eastern and western extremes of the EEZ is over 4 500 km. Tarawa Atoll is the
location of the capital and several urban areas.

About 90 000 people live in Kiribati. Preston (2000) estimated
that 1 131 people are employed in commercial harvesting and 20 000 employed in
subsistence fishing. In recent years Kiribati has received around US$20 million
each year from licensing foreign fishing vessels. In early 2001 a total of about
350 foreign fishing vessels were licensed to fish in Kiribati waters. Two
longliners and one purse seiner are based and/or registered in
Kiribati.

Subsistence and small-scale artisanal fishing is conducted
throughout the islands, from traditional canoes driven by sail or paddle, from
plywood canoes powered by outboard motor and from larger outboard-powered
skiffs. Fishing is by bottom handlining, trolling, pole-and-line fishing,
midwater handlining, spearing, trapping, netting and reef gleaning. Small-scale
commercial fishing is concentrated around Tarawa where a sizeable population,
some ice and cold store facilities, and a cash-oriented economy create better
market conditions. Household survey data from 1995 shows a total of 565 skiffs
and 3 968 canoes in the country. Of the skiffs, 407 (72 percent) were based in
Tarawa. Savins (2001) states that (a) there are over 200 troll boats presently
active on Tarawa which employ 300 fishers full time and 300 fishers part
time.

Features of Kiribati which are especially important in sea safety include:

a large amount of ocean fishing in skiffs;

great dependence on outboard engines and the fact that most boats carry
a single engine;

the low-lying nature of the islands limiting visibility of islands to
about ten nautical miles.

A typical sea accident involves a Tarawa-based skiff trolling for tuna at a
considerable distance from land and experiencing mechanical or fuel problems
and drifting days or months until recovered by a foreign fishing vessel.

9.2 Fisheries management and sea
safety

The broad objectives of fisheries management in Kiribati are
articulated in the annual reports of the Fisheries Division. Fisheries Division
(2000) states the goals are:

expansion of
commercial utilization of inshore marine and fisheries resources, without
disruption of artisanal and subsistence use;

rational utilization of marine
and fisheries resources on a sustainable basis;

maximization of optimal
returns from the utilization of offshore marine and fisheries
resources.

Other indications of fisheries management objectives are
located in legislation and in development plans:

In Kiribati's
Fisheries Act there is no direct reference to management objectives, but some
indication of expected outcomes is inherent in the first substantive section of
the Act: "The Minister may take such measures as he shall see fit to promote the
development of fishing and fisheries in Kiribati to ensure that the fisheries
resources of Kiribati are exploited to the full for the benefit of
Kiribati".

The National Development
Strategy 2000-2003 has a section on fisheries. It states that the policies and
strategies in the sector are: (1) Promote private sector production and
marketing of marine products, (2) Identify specific marine commodities having
highest commercial feasibility, (3) Accord high priority to selected commodities
that can be produced and marketed by smallholders in the outer islands, (4)
Formulate a strategy for promoting fish transshipment by foreign vessels and for
achieving greater utilization of onshore facilities by these vessels, (5)
Complete development plan for the cultured pearl industry, and (6) Complete
development plan for the milkfish industry.

From the above, the safety of fishers does not appear to be a
prominent fisheries management objective.

With respect to specific management measures in the inshore
areas, the national fisheries legislation stipulates:

the taking of fish
in any traditional fishing area except by members of the area's traditional
owners;

prohibition of destructive
fishing;

areas closed to fishing and
size restrictions on lobsters;

Christmas Island has several
"no kill" zones in the lagoon to protect the bone fish fly fishing
industry;

a ban on the use of underwater
breathing apparatus for harvesting sea cucumber.

In addition to management intervention specified by the
fisheries legislation, there are several other types of measures:

North Tarawa has a
no-fishing marine sanctuary at Naa, the very northern end of Tarawa, under the
Ministry of Environment and Social Development.

The most southern islands of
Kiribati Arorae and Tamana and to a limited effect Nikunau have local Island
by-laws that prohibit the use of outboard motors, gill nets and kerosene
pressure lamps for fishing. These rules stem from a belief that this gear will
scare fish from their Islands.

Island by-laws and local
council by-laws on several islands restricting fishing in various inshore lagoon
areas or sometimes specific outer reefs

With respect to offshore fisheries management, the primary
objective appears to be generation of government revenue and the main measure to
achieve this objective is to license foreign fishing vessels for a fee. In early
2001 a total of about 350 foreign fishing vessels were licensed to fish in
Kiribati waters. An important restriction is that Kiribati licensing policy
prohibits foreign tuna fishing activity within 12 nautical miles of any island
in Kiribati.

There are several effects of the above fisheries management on
sea safety.

Some of the
restrictive inshore measures (closed areas, etc.) may have the effect of
encouraging more offshore fishing.

On the southern reef islands
(Arorae, Tamana, Nikunau) fishers generally do not drift away as paddling is the
source of propulsion and fishing effort is generally near shore.

There is the contention that
discarded fish from foreign vessels transshipping in Tarawa have kept fishers at
home due to the local market being flooded with low value fish. On the other
hand, when there are no discarded fish, competition is high and fishers are
encouraged by market forces to fish in rough weather.

The large number of foreign
fishing vessels in the Kiribati zone can provide an opportunity for drifting
fishers to be rescued. According to the Marine Division, about 25 percent of all
missing boats are recovered by foreign vessels. There are, however, reports that
foreign fishing boats sometimes refuse to provide assistance to drifting
fishers.

9.3 Safety programmes

Sea Safety is an ongoing feature of the Fisheries Division's
training programme, especially that dealing with outboard engines. An outboard
mechanical training workshop has been established at the Fisheries Division,
funded by Japan's Overseas Fisheries Cooperation Foundation (OFCF). Most of the
participants are island council mechanics and, after training, they pass on
their skills through similar workshops on their home island. Because outboard
motor breakdown is the most common cause of problems at sea, an outboard motor
maintenance and repair manual has been produced in the Kiribati
language.

Other safety-related initiatives of the Fisheries Division
include:

the testing of VMS
transponders;

sponsorship of a radio
programme on the national radio every two weeks on various fisheries topics
(about twice per year the subject is safety at sea; Radio Kiribati reaches
almost all Kiribati residents);

establishment of a HF radio
repeater at Betio on Tarawa, and plans to set another in Abaiang and Maiana to
provide coverage for fishers on all three islands;

equipping the two government
longliners with safety gear as per SPC's recommendations;

At the request of the Fisheries Division, SPC is producing
safety at sea posters in the Kiribati language. Almost every fuel station on
Tarawa has displayed posters and they have been sent to all island councils and
outer island fisheries assistants. A local video company has been contracted to
translate the SPC safety at sea video into the Kiribati language. Earlier the
English version was sent to every Island council in Kiribati for public showing.
The video was also made available at video stores in Tarawa for loaning at no
charge. A Fisheries assistant on Marekei reported that the video was widely
viewed and well received on the Island.

In the early 1990s the FAO Regional Fisheries Support
Programme designed, manufactured and promoted a simple emergency sail rig for
small vessels. In Tarawa there were advertisements, meetings, and
demonstrations, but attendance was poor. One boat was fitted with the rig in
Bairiki and two in Betio. It is believed, that fishers only used the rigs for a
limited time then left them at home. A Senior Fisheries officer has commented
that the emergency sail rigs are too cumbersome and will always be left at home.
He therefore believes that radios are more appropriate for safety than
sails.

The Tarawa Technical Institute (TTI) has conducted several
outboard motor maintenance and repair workshops, targeting outer island
participants. In 1988 TTI conducted evening classes for fishers. The course
covered basic safety at sea issues and basic navigation. The course was popular,
each course ran for two weeks, and about 12 courses were held over a one-year
period. Every fisher who attended was presented with a compass at the end of the
course.

The Marine Division has carried out training for captains to
obtain a lagoon licence which cover the trip to Abaiang, where the more regular
passenger ferries operate. The Marine Division through the Marine Training
School has upgraded all grade 4 and grade 5 captains and engineers, while all
grades 3, 2 and 1 have been upgraded in Fiji, Australia or New
Zealand.

Various donor initiatives in fisheries development have
contained safety components. The Outer Island Fisheries Project (first UK
(1985-1992), then Japan (1992-present) has insisted on safety measures for its
fishing craft, including small sea gull engines and emergency sail rigs. In the
UNDP/FAO Artisanal Boatbuilding Project (1982 to 1989) the main priority was
producing safer commercial fishing craft.

The effectiveness of the above initiatives effective is not
always easy to judge. Some observations are:

If efficient
sailing rigs are fitted to new boats they are almost always carried on boats in
the outer islands where fish prices are low.

If an emergency sail rig can
serve as a combined sun/rain cover, it is usually carried. In addition, if the
rig's rudder and leeboard are an actual floor section they are usually
carried.

The FAO canoes with emergency
foam floatation and sails have saved lives. This is evidenced by several drift
voyages in which the flotation held the victims afloat and the sail allowed the
collection of drinking water.

The outboard motor training
has helped with the more basic repair and maintenance of outboard motors. This
is evidenced by the fact that the majority of fishers reported missing, turn up
within three days, often because they are able to repair engines at
sea.

Most full-time commercial
fishers of Tarawa carry outboard motor tools, many carry a compass and several
carry emergency flares and GPS units. This could be seen to be partly from the
various safety training programmes and safety at sea publicity.

Some safety initiatives may have had little or adverse effect
on fisher's safety. The auxiliary outboard motors supplied by the UK Outer
Island Project mostly ended up on relative's traditional canoes, as these
engines are ideal on traditional canoes. Many of the emergency sail rigs are
left at home. The HF radio repeaters are only of use if fishers can obtain
radios at a cost perceived to be reasonable. The VMS system may prove too
costly.

There are several options for improving sea safety in
Kiribati. Facilitating access to safety gear, enhancement of boatbuilding
skills, safety awareness, and regulations covering sea safety appear to be the
most important.

Fishers interviewed stated they were willing to buy safety
equipment if available. The Fisheries Division indicates they would like to sell
safety equipment for fishing boats at cost price, under the same revolving fund
they currently run for fishing equipment. Another possibility is to make
available a low cost sea safety kit and allow fishers to purchase the kit on
credit.

Local boatbuilding skills could make a major contribution to
sea safety in Kiribati. Although the Kiribati vessel designs are generally
seaworthy, the standard of construction is often very poor, leading to problems
at sea. Presently, there are only a few competent boatbuilders. There is a need
to train young school leavers how to build boats correctly to eliminate the
types of sea accidents caused by poor construction. The same boatbuilding skills
are also in demand for repairing existing craft, which could also have a
positive effect on safety.

There is a need to educate fishers on every island concerning
the need for, and use of, safety gear. The use of radio (see section above)
could play an important role.

There is support for mandatory safety requirements on fishing
vessels. Some people feel that training about safety at sea should be compulsory
before anyone is allowed to take a boat to sea. The Director of Marine in the
Ministry of Communications believes that there must be compulsory inspection of
fishing boats.

SPC staff have recently visited Kiribati and commented on
improvements to sea safety. The report of the mission (Chapman, 2003) made three
suggestions concerning safety:

that the Fisheries
Division encourage local small-scale vessel operators and future medium-scale
tuna longline fishers to purchase sea safety equipment for their vessel, with
the government assisting with the provision of a soft loan for the initial
purchase of the gear;

that the Fisheries Division
develop or request materials from SPC, and run an awareness campaign on sea
safety and the use of safety equipment, for all small-scale fishers;

that the Fisheries Division
work with the Marine Department, to ensure appropriate regulations are developed
and implemented for sea safety requirements on small-scale fishing
vessels.

9.4 Data recording

In Kiribati the authority responsible for sea safety data
recording is the Registrar of Seamen, Marine Division, and Ministry of
Communications. Missing fishers are reported to the Marine Division, usually by
their families. This report is placed in a general file.

Upon receiving a report, the Marine Division will first phone
all nearby islands and establish if the boat has turned up at an alternative
island. If not, a full-scale search is mounted immediately, The Marine Division
may charter aircraft, inter-island vessels, or request the police patrol boat to
assist, with all expenses covered by the Marine Division. The Marine Division
also advise Fisheries Division Licensing Unit, who then requests any distant
water vessels in the area to keep a look out for the missing craft.

According to staff of the Marine Division, to compile a
summary of sea accidents for past years would require a search through many
files, some of which may have been lost. For the past two years, the missing
craft data can be summarized as:

2001

2002

Missing craft

42

22

Returned safely ashore

27

19

Rescued

13

3

Disappeared

2

0

The Marine Division indicates that in a typical year there
would be no less than 40 missing vessels reported, of which 25 would be found
within three days. Three or four are likely to be rescued later locally, and
around ten are found by distant water fishing vessels or commercial cargo
vessels.

The missing craft information for 2001 and 2002 indicates a
major difference between the years. It is likely that 2001 could be considered a
normal year, while 2002 shows the effect of reduced skiff fishing due to a
market glut caused by transhipping vessels discarding fish in Tarawa. A Tarawa
fish exporter stated that "half the local troll fleet was out of business for
almost all of 2002".

Data analysis and collection could be improved by the Marine Division having
a separate file for missing vessels. Reports should include the reported details
as well as information obtained from a debriefing of the victims. An annual
summary should be produced and include such information as fishers involved,
reason for distress, location of recovery, and sighted vessels which did not
offer assistance.

9.5 Legislation

The basic fisheries law is the Fisheries Act (Cap.33).
Although the word "safety" does not appear in the Act, there is a stipulation
that all local fishing vessels require a licence. The Act further states that a
licence is not to be issued "unless there is subsisting a valid unexpired
certificate of seaworthiness issued in respect of the fishing vessel". However a
"fishing vessel" is specifically defined to be "any vessel used or adapted for
use for fishing commercially, and includes support vessels and craft, and
helicopters and light aircraft used in fishing operations, but does not include
a sailing boat or paddling canoe of native design or a boat, punt or barge
having an overall length of less than seven metresetres, whether powered by an
engine or not".

Another relevant feature of the Fisheries Act is that it
allows the President to make regulations for 26 named purposes, none of which
concerns sea safety.

In summary, it appears that it is not possible to address sea
safety for small vessels through the licensing and regulation provisions of the
present Fisheries Act. For fishing vessels above seven metres, the Act addresses
only seaworthiness.

The Shipping Act 1990 and subsidiary legislation is applicable
to only commercial cargo/passenger vessels above ten metres. A report on
shipping legislation in Kiribati (SPC 2001) states "the attitude of fishing
companies towards STCW is that STCW does not affect fishing vessels and
therefore officers on board fishing vessels do not require further training or
upgrading to STCW requirements".

The Director of Marine has expressed the belief that fishing vessels should
come under the same regulations as commercial cargo and passenger craft. This
sentiment appears reasonable but consideration should also be given to regulating
safety on the size of vessel most often involved in sea accidents.

9.6 Boatbuilding and vessel
design

In the 1980s FAO produced designs for ten different vessels,
from a one-man paddling canoe to an 11 metres transport canoe. Individuals
involved in that work have subsequently produced six additional designs. Local
boatbuilders have continually developed their own designs of planing skiffs and
a local version the FAO single outrigger canoe. Although the skiff designs
appear good and three or four boatbuilders build to a safe standard, there are
some problems, especially with the lack of foam for emergency
floatation.

An aluminium boatyard in Fiji has been exporting four to six
metres aluminium boat kits to the Betio Shipyard in Kiribati where they are put
together with welding and rivets. These vessels are an appropriate design and
have emergency foam floatation. The same company has recently introduced a
slightly larger seven metres skiff with a mechanized monofilament longline drum
and associated gear.

Other building design developments include:

The Betio shipyard
has been modifying FAO designs for passenger craft. Because the superstructure
is large, much of the carrying capacity is lost.

As there are hundreds of
non-operational busses with good engines, there is presently interest in
adapting second-hand Toyota min-bus diesel engines for use on boats.

A ten metres catamaran has
been modified into an 11.6 metres proa and equipped with a 12hp direct-drive
air-cooled diesel.

A Kiribati-based American
boatbuilder has designed several boats himself.

Generally these initiatives have improved safety as the
designs are mostly good. One difficulty is that boatbuilders with little
experience are producing some dangerous boats, especially small skiffs and
plywood single outrigger canoes.

Another problem is with the surveyors selected by the Marine
Division. Although the people appointed may have some appropriate experience,
they may not be fully qualified. This can result in the surveyors being mainly
interested in the vessel safety equipment, rather than the more complex issues
of vessel design or quality of workmanship.

With respect to the use of sail, this practice is more
prevalent today in Kiribati than in any other Pacific Island country. In
addition to the traditional sailing canoe, the outer islands have continued to
utilize sail on the introduced FAO-designed vessels to reduce operating costs;
sometimes there is no alternative due to lack of availability of fuel. Attempts
at introducing emergency sail rigs have not been especially
successful.

With respect to naval architecture work, there is a need to introduce criteria
for proper construction. These specifications should be easy for an inspecting
officer to understand and follow. Scantlings should be specified for various
sized vessels, along with the minimum amount of safety equipment for each size
category of vessel.

Full time commercial fishers in Tarawa are seen to be more aware of safety
at sea.

Emergency sail rigs will always be left at home if they have no other
purpose than safety. If the sail is used for sun and rain cover it will
usually be carried, if the rudder and leeboard are a section of the floor,
they will usually be carried.

Oars or spars must be useful in the fishing operation if they are to be
carried.

Emergency foam floatation will always be removed if it is not securely
fastened.

A small auxiliary engine will generally end up on another boat. A second
engine is expensive. but because dirty fuel and running out of fuel are
common, it is no guarantee of safety.

[14] Most of the
information in this section was kindly provided by Mike Savins, a Tarawa-based
boatbuilder, fish processor, and consultant.